The present invention relates to remote monitoring of machinery using email (electronic mail) messaging.
In one embodiment, the invention is a machine status notification system in which an email message is automatically generated and sent when a sensor detects that a machine fails or experiences a predefined condition or abnormality. The email message may contain minimal information, such as just the email address of the sensor detecting the machine failure or other abnormality. This minimal information is sufficient to inform a service technician receiving the message of the general nature of the failure or abnormality.
Large machinery, such as generators and turbines in power plants are monitored to ensure their proper operation. Sensors on these machines monitor the machine""s operating parameters, such as power output, vibration, temperature, rotating speed, fuel consumption, internal pressures, and exhaust gas temperature. There may also be a wide variety of other machine conditions monitored by various different types of sensors that monitor the machinery on an on-going basis. Each sensor monitors one operating parameter of a machine. Each sensor will, thus, generate a signal only in response to one type of machine failure or condition.
Typically, a local computer monitoring system tracks the outputs from the various sensors attached to the machine to collect and analyze the data from the sensors. The local monitoring system may be a computer unit adjacent to the machine, or a computer unit in the same building with the machines. For example, a power plant may have a monitoring station at each of the larger turbo-machinery stations to continually monitor the operating conditions of these machines and track their operation. The monitoring system allows on-site human operators to determine if corrective action is needed to the machinery. However, the on-site monitoring system often does not provide for remote notifications to service personnel located off-site from the machinery of on-site problems with the machinery.
In certain instances, remote monitoring of machinery has been done by computer systems that establish a direct land-line connection or other direct telephony connection to the on-site operating system. An on-site computer system collects data from the machine sensors and sends the data to a remote computer system. The remote system receives data that has been collected and analyzed by the on-site monitoring system. Using the remote computer system, a technician or engineer at a remote site, e.g., the manufacturing facility that made the machine, can obtain the data from the on-site system, download that data, and then review the data and diagnoses the machine trouble or failure without having traveled to the machine location. One such monitoring system is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,517,468 entitled xe2x80x9cDiagnostic System and Method.xe2x80x9d
A difficulty with existing remote monitoring systems is the need to establish telephone connections with the location having the machinery. These telephone connections may be over long distance connections, and could be overseas telephone connections if the machinery is located on one continent which is different from the manufacturer of the machine. Accordingly, establishing direct telephone connections with remote machinery can be both expensive and difficult for extremely long-distance connections.
The Internet provides a means to avoid long distance telephone connections between machinery and remote monitoring stations. Internet messaging is commonly used between individual persons to communicate with one another. Accordingly, the Internet provides a means to avoid having to establish direct connections between a machine site and a remote monitoring station.
There is a long-felt need for remote monitoring and notification of irregular conditions of and anomalous behavior by machinery. By way of example, power plant machinery that is monitored on site by sensors may be serviced by off-site personnel, such as manufacturer""s representatives who also require remote monitoring by organizations, such as the manufacturer, responsible for warranty service for the machines. There is a need for remote notification of machine failures and other abnormal conditions which are automatically sent via the Internet to a remote location for review by service personnel.
A system has been developed in which email notification is used to remotely monitor machine and to report faults in those machines. The email messages are automatically generated by the machine and/or local computer unit. A machine fault or other condition is detected by one or more sensors monitoring the machine. A signal issued by the sensor in response to the detected fault or other condition prompts a computer system to generate an email message. The message identifies as its address source, i.e., addressor, an address that uniquely identifies the sensor which detected the fault or other machine condition. The message is sent via the Internet to an addressee, who may be an off-site machine maintenance technician, manufacturer""s representative or other individual. The addressee, upon reading the addressor listed in the email message, is able to determine the sensor which detected the machine fault or condition, the machine that the sensor is monitoring, and the site facility at which the machine is located.
A machine is assigned a group of email addresses, where each address corresponds to one of the various sensors monitoring that machine. Each email address itself identifies the sensor, the machine to which the sensor is monitoring and the plant location of the machine. The email address of the sensor alone provides sufficient information to identify the sensor, machine being monitored by the sensor and the machine site.
An email message from a machine sensor is automatically generated when the sensor detects a predetermined machine condition, such as a fault condition. When a predetermined condition is sensed, the sensor signals a local computer unit which, in turn, generates an email message that identifies the sensor, machine and site. Specifically, the email address for the sensor is included in the address line of the message. The address line of the email message identifies the sensor that detected the machine condition, the machine on which the sensor is mounted and the plant location for the machine.
The email message may contain no information other than the email address of the sensor that caused the message to be generated. A technician or other person receiving the email message from the machine sensor can determine directly from the email address alone the following: (1) the sensor which caused the message to be generated, (2) the machine which the sensor is monitoring, and (3) the plant or other facility at which the machine is located.
An email message that conveys only the address of its sender may be used to notify a service technician at a remote site of a machine failure or other condition. Moreover, if the machine condition causes more than one sensor to generate a fault signal, then multiple email messages will be generated. Multiple email messages from various sensors will provide additional information on the condition of a machine.